


Rhapsody

by NoelleLilacNotte, Yiiiiikes



Category: Hazbin Hotel
Genre: Alcoholism, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Cannibalism, Character Development, F/M, Hazbin OC, Hurt/Comfort, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Multi, Murder, Recreational Drug Use, Self Harm, So so much internalized homophobia, Symbolism, a lot of symbolism, plot heavy, things get worse before they get better
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-18
Updated: 2019-12-18
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:15:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 9,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21842806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoelleLilacNotte/pseuds/NoelleLilacNotte, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yiiiiikes/pseuds/Yiiiiikes
Summary: The epic love story of two couples, two friends, and a found family.Redemption is harder than it looks, but doesn’t that make it all the better?
Relationships: Alastor/OC, Angel Dust/OC
Kudos: 5





	1. Welcome to The Happy Hotel!

Charlie tapped her pen on her clipboard. A short list of chores, mostly crossed off, was at the bottom of the page, while an even shorter list of names sat at the top.

\- Angel Dust (checked in!)  
\- Cassier “Cas” Basset  
\- Belladonna “Vilet” Hyacinth

Three residents. Three people who had, for one reason or another, joined Charlie’s project and agreed to be her wards. With the resources she and Alastor had poured into the hotel, she was doubly determined to prove that she could redeem all three sinners.

She checked the papers clipped underneath the list. Each page a record of the sins the demons had committed in life, each line a cosmic crime they needed to repent for.

“Angel Dust:  
\- Recreational drug use  
\- Assassination  
\- Premeditated murder  
\- Mass/gang murder  
\- Gang relations  
\- Sexual deviance  
\- Fetishism  
\- Prostitution  
Crimes: Lust, wrath, heresy, indulgence.”

“Cassier Basset:  
\- Suicide  
\- Exploitation  
\- Plagiarism  
\- Recreational drug use  
\- Alcoholism  
\- Child endangerment  
\- Sexual deviance  
\- Glamorization of sinful lifestyles  
Crimes: Greed, sloth, indulgence, pride, lust.”

“Belladonna Hyacinth:  
\- Accessory to murder  
\- Witchcraft  
\- Exploitation  
\- Prostitution  
\- Self-sexualization  
\- Sexual deviance  
\- Laziness  
\- Hedonism  
\- Romanticization of sinners  
\- Romanticization of sinful lifestyles  
\- Contributing to the sinfulness of others  
Crimes: Lust, sloth, indulgence, gluttony, pride.”

Charlie sighed. The lists weren’t exactly out of the ordinary for hellbound souls, but it was certainly a laundry list of things to repent for. She felt determined, to help the poor souls, to redeem them!

Or at least, she was determined until she heard a knock on the front door.

Cas was tempted to turn and run when he heard the rapid footsteps approaching the door.

Christ almighty, why was he doing this again? There were a million other things he could be doing right now that would be infinitely more fun. He could binge drink until he couldn't stand up on his own, he could play with fire, he could take a god damned nap, he could find a guy to- Nope! He was not going to think about that right now.

Luckily for Cas, as soon as he cut himself off the door flung open, revealing the princess of Hell herself, looking like a kid on Christmas. Cas didn't move to greet her, or really do anything at all, and Charlie's face fell. He wondered for a second why she looked so sad all of the sudden before ultimately deciding that it was because he was just so pitiful to look at.

Charlie wasn't actually pitying him, she just felt so sad to see him look so... Depressed. He was like a diagram out of a psychology book pointing out all the signs of depression.

After a solid ten seconds of paralyzing eye contact, Charlie perked up again.

“Hello! Welcome to the Happy Hotel! I’m Charlie, but I’m sure you knew that! We’re waiting on another guest but when she gets here I can introduce you to everyone! It’s gonna be so much fun, you’ll love it!”

Sweet Satan this girl was high energy, Cas could barely keep up with her words. He hadn’t expected another guest, as far as he could tell from the 666 News report, the hotel wasn’t exactly popular.

Then again, he hadn’t checked in because he wanted to run into more of his...”fans”. He just hoped his bad luck wouldn’t stick another stalker in the room next to his.

"Cool... cool." Cas hated the idea of meeting anyone right now, he'd been hoping the place was completely desolate so he could just be miserable in peace, but the way Charlie talked about it made it seem like there was a whole team in the hotel.

Charlie led him inside, giving him as grand of a tour as she could while Cas zoned the fuck out. He asked himself again why he was here, what the point was. He doubted he could ever really be redeemed, some actions just _can't_ be forgiven no matter how sorry you are.

He looked back at Charlie, watching her present the hotel like she was giving a sales pitch, and he remembered her song from the broadcast he happened upon last week.

Oh, that was it! That was why he was here, for Charlie. The kid put on one hell of a show, and that was something he'd always support, alive or dead.

“-aaaaaaaand this is Husk! He’s our reception! He’s a bit of a grumpy Gus but I’ll bet you can be friends if you try!”

Cas was snapped out of his daze, not by the gruff-looking winged cat man sitting at the reception desk, but at the wall of glittering bar bottles behind him.

“...so, a bar, huh? Odd choice.”

Charlie’s grin faltered momentarily, before the hopeful expression in her eyes returned. She turned Cas away from the bar, leading him to a wall of portraits near the main entrance.

“Don’t worry about that too much, just try to ignore it and it’ll be ok, alright? The other guest is supposed to be here soon, so why don’t you just stay here for a minute?”

Cas was about to reply when footsteps echoed down the dilapidated but luxurious hall.

“Ay, Princess! We’re gonna be runnin’ outta food in a day or two here, we gotta get some more meat or Al is gonna flip—hey who’s the newbie?”

Charlie’s right grin got tighter. She kept her cheery demeanor, but Cas could hear her gritting her teeth through every word.

“Angel! I thought you were out! We’ve got two new residents to orientate today! What are you doing here?”

Angel shrugged. Charlie looked back and forth between Cas and Angel with panic in her eyes and sweat on her brow.

“Why. Don’t. You. Introduce. Yourselves!”

"I'm Cas," he mumbled, giving Angel Dust a once over. "And you are so fucking tall." Cas was barely six feet tall, and Angel towered a solid two feet over him. That was one of the weirdest things about hell in Cas's experience, just how insanely different everyone looked.

But this guy was an entirely different beast for Cas, he just... could not take his eyes off of this guy! He would never admit it, not even in his own thoughts but _holy shit_ he was cute.

The tall man, who was apparently called Angel, looked Cas up and down, like he was sizing up a piece of meat at a butcher’s shop.

“Tell ya what, hotshot, if ya evah’ run outta shit to do ‘round here, bring some white powder a your choosin’ and a couple hundred cash up to my room, we can have ourselves a real fun night.”

Charlie looked like she was about to have a heart attack.

“ANGEL!”

“What? I seen this guy around before, he can handle it. Ain’t that right, rockstar?”

Cas didn’t respond. The teasing nickname was just the icing on the cake after Angel’s less-than-savory offer.

“Eh, whateva. I’m headin out, I’ve got a photo shoot to get to. See ya later, toots!”

Cas took a few extra seconds to process what the hell just happened. He wanted _very_ much to make sure that everyone knew he was Not Gay! But he knew denying it would just cause speculation, it qas best to just let aleeping dogs lie.

He was still kind of pissed though. He hated the implication that he'd buy sex from anyone- no, he had known far too many people who's lives had been ruined one way or another by their 'clients'.

"I am _so_ sorry!" Charlie said. "Angel Dust can just be a little bit... Much sometimes! I swear h-he's not always like that, I mean, he kind of is but-" Cas cut her off.

"Charlie." She looked back at him, wide eyed. "I'm fine. Can you just show me my room?" She bounced back immediately.

"Of course! Right this way!"

God, he’d only been around this chick for a few minutes and he already just wanted to sleep.


	2. Secondary

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The second of the new residents arrives, and a familiar face appears to greet her.

Just as they’d taken the first steps up the staircase, a soft knock caused Charlie to bolt back to the entrance, throwing the doors open.

“Hello and welcome to the Happy Hotel! Are you Belladonna?”

A tiny voice squeaked out a conformation, and a young-looking girl padded into the hallway.

She seemed almost entirely devoid of color, dressed entirely in varying shades of black and gray. The only contrast was a pair of practically glowing neon pink horns, and matching irises.

If Cas were a few steps more straight, he’d call her hot. If Cas were a lot more fucked up, he’d say she looked like a teenage hooker. But first judgements aside, he couldn’t help but notice that she seemed familiar. He couldn’t place it until she spoke.

“You can call me Vilet, please.”

“Violet?” Asked Charlie.

“Sure.” The girl responded.

Suddenly Cas recognized her, and cursed his luck. She was at one of his first shows, but she’d been a child at the time. He pleaded to whatever god was out there that she wouldn’t recognize him, but as usual, Lady Luck looked the other way.

“Oh. Hello, you’re Cas Basset, aren’t you? I used to be a big fan.”

He sighed, hard.

"Yeah. Thats me, don't get excited, I'm a lot less cool than you think I am." He was absolutely sick of meeting fans. When he first showed up in Hell it was a delight, many of his fans were willing to buy him a drink, or dinner, or even let him crash on their couch. But one too many fans who wanted him to spit in their mouths ruined it for him.

“Oh. Ok.”

And then the conversation was over. Vilet walked back to Charlie and just sort of...looked at her. Charlie seemed uncomfortable, but no more than she had been when Angel was around.

“So! Let’s get you two introduced and situated...Angel already left for the day so Violet, you’ll have to meet him tomorrow, but you’ve both already met Husk, and everyone else who you need to know is here! Let’s get started, follow me!”

Charlie led the duo around the hotel, stopping to introduce them to Vaggie and Nifty. Somehow during their trek, Cas and Vilet had gotten separated from Charlie and subsequently gotten super fucking lost.

"I think we're just gonna have to sit and wait for somebody to find us," Cas said after the duo had turned a corner to yet another dead end.

"Yeah." Vilet responded, still jilted from Cas's earlier dismissal. He felt sort of shitty about it. Not a lot but, enough that he felt like he should at least _try_ to make up for it.

He pulled a flask out of his back pocket and took a quick drink.

"So, what show did you see?"

"Hm?" Vilet hummed in response.

"Which of my shows did you go to? I remembered your face but I was real coked out for ah... most of my career, so I don't remember which show I saw you at. I know it was in the early days though. Right before I released _Caralee_." He offered her the flask.

She took the flask but didn’t drink from it, at least not at first.

“Red Rock Arizona, 1996. I was 7. You gave me a shirt and a hug.”

“Oh.”

“You smelled bad.”

“...oh?”

“You still smell bad.”

She didn’t seem malicious, or even annoyed. Her voice was a perfect monotone, like she was just stating the weather, or a simple math equation.

She chugged a good third of the liquid in the flask in one go, then passed it back to Cas.

He gave a short, sharp laugh.

"I remember that. I was so freaked out, I stopped the whole show to be like 'who's fucking kid is this? Where's your mom?'"

He shook the flask, kind of disappointed that he'd have to refill it sooner than he wanted, but he was glad the kid was at least talking now, even if she seemed less than enthusiastic about it. He continued talking.

"Yeah, yeah you had like these sick little braids with ribbons and shit all up in 'em. I made Ricky jump off stage and go get you a t shirt 'cause you were shivering.

Vilet hummed, seeming almost amused. Her voice didn’t change, but the glowing pink of her eyes seemed brighter.

“I remember you made me go backstage after the show, because nobody came to pick me up. The drummer guy freaked out and thought I was your secret daughter or something. Looking back it was kind of hilarious.”

“Ahah, yeah! He started screaming about child support, accused me of hooking up with his ex. By the way, where did you go after all that? I can’t remember much after that screaming match.”

“Oh, I was staying with...a friend. Nearby.”

"Well, I'm glad you didn't end up getting kidnapped by some weirdo. God, Dominic really lost his shit that night. He OD'd like two months after that show..." the air was still for a moment. "Fuck, I need a cigarette!" Cas began digging around in his pockets in search of one.

Vilet's attention turned to the distant sound of... Static? She could hear radio static coming from somewhere nearby. She turned to go investigate the noise and by the time Cas had procured a cigarette and a lighter she was gone.

Cas thought for a moment that he’d finally gone crazy. The ghost of some kid from his glory days, giving closure to a small mystery and disappearing? Not the weirdest thing that’s ever happened to him, but definitely up there. He lit his cigarette and inhaled.

Vilet on the other hand followed the noice, the nostalgic sound of fuzzy static leading her through the hallways. Her footsteps got faster and faster, until she was stopped dead in her tracks after turning a corner.

She’d smacked face-first into the red pinstriped fabric of a very tall man’s jacket.

Alastor turned to see Vilet, who had quickly taken a step back. She experienced a similar conundrum to the one that Cas had gone through when he met Angel; this motherfucker was very tall and very attractive.

"Ah! You must be one of the newcomers that Charlie has been so delighted about!"

“Oh. Hello. Who are you?”

The man leaned down to meet her eyes one-to-one, grabbing one of her hands with both of his and shaking enthusiastically.

“Alastor, pleasure to be meeting you!”

“You were on tv the other day.”

“Was I? How fascinating! The progression of technology is amazing, but oh I do have a soft spot for a good old fashioned radio!”

“Music?”

“Of course, my dear! Music is the food of the soul, and as a great enjoyer of food myself, I find it a wonderful pastime to explore all types of nourishment!”

Vilet’s pupils morphed into tiny exclamation points, and she immediately tugged Alastor back the way she’d come.

“I have somebody you should meet.”

Cas looked up to see Vilet rushing back at him, with a stranger in tow.

"Hey kid, I was wondering where you ran off to. Who's this guy?"

"Cas, this is Alastor. Alastor this is Cas, he's a musician."

Cas gave Alastor a wave but he was admittedly pretty intimidated. This guy looked like he'd slice of somebody's head off with one hand and stir a cup of tea with the other.

Alastor gave Cas his usual grin.

“So, what era did you perish in, my good fellow? Little flower over there is almost brand new, a refugee from the digital age! Are you a friend of hers?”

"Uh, 2001. And we just met today, sort of. Kid was a fan of my stuff, saw me in concert when she was little." Cas shifted uncomfortably under Alastors prodding gaze.

“Well! Always fantastic to find another lover of the arts! I do hope you enjoy yourself here. I know I will.”

The last line was delivered with a sickeningly falsified cheer, and for possibly the millionth time in his life, Cassier Basset tucked tail and ran.

He was not looking forward to the rest of the day.


	3. Game Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Charlie’s first attempt at friendly bonding does not go as planned.

Cas awoke, abruptly, from his much needed nap to yet another encounter with his excitable host.

“Wake up, its only 6pm! Everyone’s home tonight so I’ve decided we’re all gonna have a big family game night! Isn’t that great?! Come downstairs and we can get started!”

He didnt recall passing out on one of the couches in the lobby but it was frankly one of the least alarming places he could have woken up. For as much as he genuinely liked Charlie (she was like a kid, all positive and pure) he couldn't for the life of him wrap his head around her boundless energy.

He wanted to go back to sleep but at the risk of getting kicked out (and god forbid upsetting Charlie and incurring Vaggie's wrath) Cas rolled off the couch and did his best to gather himself before following Charlie.

What Cas was expecting from the scene he was met with downstairs was the extremely bored faces of nearly everyone in the hotel. What he wasn’t expecting was Vilet trying to talk up Husk of all people.

Cas sat down next to Vilet, who immediately turned her attention away from Husk, in favor of him.

“I didn’t expect to see you down here. Board games do not strike me as your type of entertainment.”

"They're not. I dont think I've played a board game since I was 12. I'm just here 'cause the Lady Of The House requested my presence," he said. While he spoke, he slowly slipped his flask out of his pocket and offered it to Vilet. "Doesn't seem like youre too happy about this either."

Cas looked around the room, again surveying the bored faces of his... neighbors? House mates? Fellow Patrons of the Hazbin Hotel? Whatever they were, they were all bored as shit. From across the table he made eye contact with Angel Dust and froze.

“Hey Rockstar, missed ya earlier. You didn’t come find me, and I’m hurt!”

“...hurt?” Asked Cas.

Angel nodded, overdramatic sarcasm smothering every move he made.

“I’m _absolutely wounded_. But I can think of a few ways you can make it up to me.~”

Cas glanced over at Vilet, hoping for a save from the only person in this place who seemed to like him a normal amount. She was too busy draining Cas's flask of it's contents to be of any assistance.

Cas, still half asleep and always completely stupid, responded with an awkwardly loud "I'm not gay!" His voice cracked on each word and he felt the last shreds of his dignity going up in flames. "I'm not gay." He said again, more firmly.

This time when he looked over at Vilet she was looking right at him, her big eyes boring into his very soul.

Vilet rolled her eyes and tossed the now-empty flask at Cas. Angel barked out a laugh and pointed an accusatory finger at Cas.

“Oh sugar, you’re not fooling anyone. Those shoes and those pants say you take it up the butt, and I’m inclined to believe them.”

Cas looked dumbly at his shoes. Were they gay shoes? Fuck he never even thought about it! Luckily for poor embarassed gay Cas, Charlie had unfolded the game board and called for everyone to pick a color.

"I'm not gay." He mumbled to himself, but the statement sounded like a question- one that he knew the answer to and _did not like._

Vilet’s hand shot out and snatched the pink piece, much to Angel’s dismay. Angel tossed a rainbow piece to Cas, who gave him a look and tossed the piece to Charlie. As everyone else (unenthusiastically) took playing pieces, Vilet slid out of her spot and over to Alastor. Cas could see her whisper into his ear (hair? tufts?). He couldn’t tell what she’d said, but whatever it was, it made Alastor’s permagrin widen.

Cas was very afraid.

"Hey, what are you whispering about over there kid? You plotting something?" He intended to say it as a joke, but it came out sounding awkward and paranoid.

Vilet seemed...uncomfortably enthusiastic about the idea of plotting. The corners of her mouth pulled into a threatening grin, matching her much more threatening companion.

“Of course I’m plotting something.”

"No the fuck you're not! If you two get to plot something I'm plotting something too! Closet Case, get over here and plot with me!" Angel reached across the table and pulled Cas's chair towards himself.

"Hey, now we don't have to _plot_ anything! We can just have some good clean fun-" Angel interrupted Charlie's attempt at keeping what little peace the hotel had.

"Hell no! This is gonna make things way more interesting! Isn't that right Closet Case?"

Vilet turned her smug expression towards Charlie.

“Charlotte, darling, making teams _is_ good clean fun! There’s nothing wrong with a bit of friendly competition, isn’t that right?”

Alastor laughed, staticky electricity filling the air of the room.

“Let them have their fun, my dear! I’m sure it’ll make things more interesting.”

Cas was thoroughly convinced he would not be making it out of this room alive. He was gonna die for a second time solely becuase of how strangely menacing Vilet had become. Not to mention the spider next to him who had insisted that they team up not even two minutes after calling Cas out.

"Interesting is one way to put it." Cas set his piece on the board. "Who's going first?"

“Why don’t you and Angel go first? Just to...level the playing field a bit.”

Vilet gestured casually to the deck of cards in the middle of the board. The menacing glint of her teeth and glow of her eyes hadn’t wavered for a moment, and if Cas didn’t know better he’d think she was about to blow up the room.

Cas did not know better, and was thoroughly convinced Vilet was about to blow up the room.

While maintaining nervous eye contact with Vilet, he reached across the board and grabbed a card. Angel promptly snatched the card from Cas's hand. While Angel actually played the game, Cas gave Vilet as expressive of a "what the hell and fuck are you doing" look as he could.

He honestly just looked like he was holding in vomit.

Vilet continued on with the game, cheerfully. Somehow her and Alastor’s cards were always _just_ better than the hand Angel and Cas put down. Their smiles never left their faces, thought Alastor’s was much more amused and menacing, where Vilet, while smug, genuinely seemed to be having a good time.

By round 5, Cas was getting fed up with their shit.

"Okay what the fuck! I'm almost positive there's not enough 'Sorry' cards in the deck for you to have _fucked us over_ like six times now!" He pointed an accusatory finger across the table at Vilet and Alastor. "You assholes are cheating! I don't even know how you cheat at Sorry but you're doing it and that's bullshit!"

Vilet looked at Alastor, then back to Cas. She shuffled her cards, switched decks with Alastor, hummed in amusement, and moved her piece.

“You can’t prove shit.”

Cas slipped his hand under the corner of the board.

"I'll do it. I'll flip this thing and make us all start back at square one you cheating bastards!" He threatened.

Angel tossed himself over Cas's arm and cried, "No! We can still beat 'em! We've been playing this game for a fuckin' hour I'm not starting over now!"

Vilet put her cards on the ground face down, and slid over to where Cas and Angel were sitting. She put her arms over either of their shoulders.

“Yes, give in to your rage. Flip the board, I dare you. We’ll start all over from square one.”

Angel grabbed Cas’ arm to keep him from doing what Vilet said.

“Flip the board, Cas. We’ll start over and guess what? _We’ll beat you again, and again, and again, until you give up.”_

Cas struggled against Angel's hold on his arms for a moment before ultimately giving up. He suck back in his seat and glared at Angel Dust.

"You know what?" Cas said. "I bet you're fuckin' working with them." He accused.

“Closet Case, you’re talking crazy. Let’s keep going, we can beat them if we figure out how they’re cheating. I’m basically a professional at gambling, and I don’t believe for a second you don’t know how to call a bluff. Now let’s _win_ and rub it in their faces!”

“Listen to your boyfriend, Cas.” Said Vilet

Cas almost screamed. No, scratch that, he did scream, just a little bit.

"That's exactly what someone who's cheating would say!" He turned from Angel to Vilet. "And you stay out of this you little.... fuck! I'm so mad I can't even think of a name to call you!"

Vilet gasped with dramatic mock-offense.

“How could we possibly be cheating? I’ve spoken maybe two sentences to him since we’ve been down here! It’s not my fault that you suck at this game!”

Cas sputtered, incapable of coming up with a retort.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Angel snapped his fingers in front if Cas's face, then grabbed him by the cheeks and turned him to face him. "Take a breath Closet Case! You're gonna blow a fuse if you keep this up."

Cas yanked his face out if Angel's hold.

"Would you stop calling me that?" He cried. "Fuck, let's just get this over with and lose so I can go back to bed."

“Yes, let’s!” Said Vilet, smug grin still painting her face.

“Your turn, boys.”

Cas reluctantly drew another card, not even bothering to look at it, just flicking his wrist and showing the card to Angel. Angel- visibly disappointed, moved one of their pieces a single space forward.

Vilet moved her piece two spaces, then drew a card. She giggled, picked up Cas’ piece, and put it back on square one.

Cas looked up from the board to her, and was greeted with her ever-smug grin, and a “restart” card.

“Sorry!”

Cas turned to Angel. "If I wasn't already dead this game would be the first bullet point in my fucking suicide note." Then in a fit of bitterness Cas slapped the pieces off the board (causing Angel to let out a cry) and stood up, shouting "fuck you guys!"

Vilet cocked her head to the side in confusion.

“Wait...what? But we didn’t finish our game! Is something wrong?”

"You cheated that's whats wrong!" He sighed, long and hard, suddenly feeling like a father scolding his child. "You guys won. Congrats kid." He tried not to be a bitter little baby about it but.... he failed.

Vilet stammered, confused. She turned to Alastor, who remained as stoically cheerful as ever, and then to Angel, who just shrugged. She stood up, dusted her skirt off, and walked out of the room silently.

"Shit," Cas hissed through his teeth. What was up with him and upsetting this poor kid?

"Great job Closet Case!" Angel said, shooting cas a look. He didn't even have it in him to dignify that with a response, he just sighed and slumped further down into his chair

Angel hesitantly held out his hand, then drew it back and stood up. He grabbed Cas’s jacket collar, and dragged him towards the stairs.

“I think we all need a fuckin’ nap after that mess. Where’s your room?”

Cas lazily pointed in the general direction, and Angel begrudgingly dragged him over to the door, bonked it with his hip to open it, and unceremoniously dropped Cas on the floor.

“G’night Closet Case.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. G’night Drag Show.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cassier: I’m chill.
> 
> Vilet: I’m about to end this man’s whole career.


	4. Hangover - Part One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angel does his best to comfort his new neighbor after a bad night.

“Ay Closet Case, you in here?”

Angel’s thick accent cut through the suffocating silence of the hotel. He’d gone looking for Cas, but only found his room instead. It was just as depressing as Cas was.

The smell of stale cigarette smoke did nothing to conceal the equally sickening stench of cheap alcohol and puke. A thin flannel blanket, faded and worn from use, covered a suspiciously Cas-sized lump on the rickety-looking bed.

Angel poked the lump.

“Ughhh...leave me alone. I’m fuckin tired n’ I jus wanna sleep...”

“No can do, King Dipshit. Hangova’ or none, Charlie wants us up an’ attem at a ‘reasonable hour’.”

Cas didn’t respond, opting instead to groan and curl himself into a tighter ball under the blanket. Angel debated flipping on the lights, or ripping the covers off, or just screaming until Cas was awake. He decided against all of those.

Instead, he pulled the blanket off of Cas, tossed it over the bed properly, and slid in next to him. 

“Wh...what’re you doin?”

“Quiet, Rockstar. You woke up, you technically followed the rules. ‘Sides, Charlie ain’t gonna get mad atcha for napping, right? Just go back ta sleep, it’ll do wonders on your head.”

Cas, still delirious from the alcohol and the lack of sleep, accepted the order and the hug with no resistance. Who was he to question the tall fluffy thing telling him to do exactly what he most wanted to do? He let his eyes flutter shut as he felt a surprisingly gentle hand carding its fingers through his hair.

“Sleep tight, Hotshot. Maybe if you’re real lucky I’ll be here when ya wake up.”


	5. Hangover - Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas and Vilet have a half-drunk heart-to-heart.

By the time he woke up, Cas wasn't sure what time it was. Frankly, most of the time he didn't know what time it was. But as he wandered into the kitchen looking for a late-night snack, he decided that either way, it was far too late for Vilet to be up and doing stuff.

"Hey kid," Cas said. Vilet turned towards him and his stomach sunk. "Woah, you look like shit. What's wrong?"

Vilet hissed, and dug her hands into her hair.

“Dude, can you keep it down a bit? I’m hungover as shit and I think I hit my head.”

"Sorry! Sorry. Here, come sit down." He pulled her up from her place on the floor next to the kitchen counter and guided her towards the table. Once she was sat in a chair instead of on hard tile, Cas made his way back and forth across the kitchen, making.... something. Vilet couldn't see what all Cas had put in the cup, she was pretty sure she spotted him squirting some dish soap in there.

"Here," he said placing the radioactive looking glass next to her. "The cure to all hangovers. My mom used to make it for me when i got headaches as a kid and turns out, they work on more than just your average aching noggin."

Vilet sniffed the cup and gagged. It smelled like a soap-flavored Lacroix. She looked at Cas and saw no sign of trickery.

“Fuck it.”

She downed the entire cup in one go, slammed the mug down on the counter, and winced at the resulting noise.

Surprisingly, it made her head feel just a little bit clearer. And even more surprising than that, the hellish concoction had quickly settled her stomach.

"Magic right?" Cas whispered and smiled, looking like a child showing off his art.

She laughed, humorlessly.

“Yeah...magic. Shit man, you gotta get me the recipe for that stuff, my usual hangover cure is to just get drunk again. I mean that stuff tasted like the radioactive cum of some basement dweller who lives off Mountain Dew, but it works I guess.”

Cas snorted. "Huh, I think I said the exact same thing about tequila when I was 13." He pulled up a chair, next to Vilet. "You... you okay? You seem kinda fucked up- hangover aside."

Vilet leaned back in her seat, eyes closed.

“I’m alright I guess. I mean, I’m not, I’m super fucked up all the time about everything, but nothin’ special is wrong.”

"Fuck. You, me and everybody else down here, kid." Cas said and leaned back in his chair. "You and Mr. Smiles sure seemed to get along the other day. How the fuck did you guys cheat at Sorry? I'm not even mad anymore, just confused!"

Vilet laughed, sweetly. She stretched her arms above her head, exposing a darkened bruise on her waist.

“You know those little shadow clone dudes he has? He used them to switch all the cards around while I distracted you.”

"Oh you dirty mother fuckers! Magic cheating is like, the most heinous kind of cheating! I don't know if I'm willing to be seen around a filthy magic cheater." Cas joked. His eye caught the bruise just as Vilet was covering it again.

“Magic cheating is fair play when everyone’s a fucking demon. I guarantee you that every single person in this hotel would magic cheat at anything if they knew they’d get away with it.”

"Yeah I suppose you're right," he said. He was distracted by the bruise he'd spotted. "Hey what happened there?" He asked, pointing to the spot he'd seen the bruise

Vilet squeaked and pulled her shirt down to cover the bruise.

“It’s. A bruise.”

“I can see that, what’s it from?”

“Certain. Actions. I’ve taken.”

Cas squinted at her.

"Elaborate."

"What are you, my dad? It's none of your business."

Cas gave Vilet perhaps one of the saddest looks she'd ever seen.

"Kid, you can tell me what's going on, if somebody's been fucking with you I'll kick their ass."

Vilet rubbed her temples.

“It’s too fucking early for this shit...no. Nobody is fucking with me. You ain’t gotta get all protective white knight on me, ok?”

"Okay, okay. I'll back off." Cas said, but he was still worried about her. What the hell? When did he get so attached to this punk ass kid?

Vilet gave Cas a pitying half-smile.

“If you _must_ know, I was ~acquiring~ the means to achieve this hangover. Pardon my bluntness but I’m broke as shit, so it ain’t as easy as it sounds.”

"Oh! Oh...." It took Cas a moment to completely process what she was saying. "Wait so, were you stealing it or...?" He gestured vaugely hoping she would catch what he meant.

Vilet shook her now empty mug at him in a mock toast.

“I was definitely ‘or’.”

"With who?" Cas asked without thinking. Damn his morbid curiosity!

“Uh, don’t tell Charlie, but Husk. He’s got the hookups. The good shit. Other general illegal sounding compliments.”

"Are you... fucking for real?" Cas didn't like the idea of Husk and Vilet together. It wasn't a jealousy thing, but the whole idea of them was just.... weird. Like if your sister was dating your step uncle. There's nothing wrong legally but... God does it make family reunions weird.

Vilet shrugged. “He had something I wanted, I had something he wanted. It’s hell honey, shit happens. Besides, you’re in no place to judge. Weren’t you couch surfing on fangirl pussy for a hot minute when you got here?”

"Hey that's different! I had rumors to disprove." Cas snapped, suddenly very defensive.

Vilet cocked her eyebrow.

“Just rumors, huh? I’ll believe that when I see it.”

"Why is everyone so bent on trying to convince me that I'm gay! I'm not gay!" Oh Lord, he was already getting flushed. To stop himself from saying anything stupid, he pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his jacket pocket and lit one up.

Vilet stood up and walked over to a cabinet, taking a half-empty bottle of rum out of it. When Cas opened his mouth to object, she put the bottle to her lips and threw a mouthful back.

“What? It’s not like we have anything else to do today.”

"I made you my moms Ultimate Hangover Cure and here you are getting shit faced!" He chided as he took the bottle. "Kids these days, so ungrateful." He said, and took a long drink.

“A few drinks of coconut rum isn’t gonna get me shitfaced, I can handle it. Gimme my fucking bottle back, I worked hard for it.”

Cas held the bottle up over his head.

"Come and get it kid! Just reach up and take it!" He teased. Poor Vilet was nearly a whole foot shorter than Cas.

Vilet pouted, and kicked him in the shin. When he bent down, she snatched the bottle and chugged another few shots’ worth of liquor.

“Try me, old-timer.”

"Fuck!" He hissed, and stood back up. "I mean, I definitely deserved that but still. Rude. In fact that's so rude I think you owe me a drink." He yanked the bottle out of her hands and threw back as much as he could before Vilet tore the bottle away from him. He gagged a little, and mumbled something about how coconut was always too sweet.

Cas flicked the now dead cigarette into the sink and lit up a second one.

Vilet chugged the remainder of the bottle and tossed the bottle into the trash. It broke. She winced again at the sound of shattering glass.

“Hey, Cas?”

“Yeah kid?”

“I’m sorry for upsetting you last night. I thought we were all having fun. I fucked it up for you, so...sorry.”

"No! No I totally overreacted, I was being a dick. You didn't do anything wrong. I mean, you did, but I shouldn't have been such a little bitch about it." Cas, very much wanted to hug her but instead he just offered her the cigarette. If he couldn't be affectionate, he could at least be an enabler!

She took the cigarette and inhaled, choking on the smoke but not stopping. A melancholy smile crossed her lips, and she looked up at Cas.

“Well, let’s just say we’re both dicks and there’s no hard feelings. That’s why we’re here right? To be less dick-ish.”

"Yeah, I guess so." Cas said, relieved to have cleared the air between them. For a minute, they stood in relative silence, passing the cigarette back and forth. "So what did you like, do? To get into Hell I mean. I mean, everybody's got a bunch of awful shit that they did to get down here but if you had to pin it on one thing?"

Vilet thought for a moment, cigarette hanging loosely from her lips as she stared at the ceiling.

“Probably all the drugs and prostitution. I also fucked a 40-something dude with a kid cuz’ he paid my rent for a few years there.”

"Yeah, that'll do it!" Cas laughed. Given their earlier conversation it didn't surprise Cas too much that Vilet had a sugar daddy when she was alive, but the idea still made him immensely uncomfortable for reasons he couldn't quite explain.

Vilet laughed along with him, and passed the cigarette back to him.

“And when he died I started fucking his son. Ironically he was older than me too, by a couple years. He cut his drugs with something and it got some folks he sold em’ to killed. I wonder if he ever got caught.”

"Fuck! That took a turn real quick," Cas laughed nervously. "Here I was thinking you were an innocent little sugar baby when you're really an accessory to murder." He took a long drag off his cigarette, trying to push back thhoughts of his own sins.

Fate seemed to have other plans for him however.

“How about you? I mean, I know part of it. I was...what 12? 13? When you, yaknow.” She mimicked a gun to the head with her fingers, and motioned pulling the trigger.

“Onstage too, dick move to be honest.”

He inhaled sharply, accidentally sucking the cigarette into his mouth.

"Oh shit!" Vilet exclaimed while Cas sputtered and spit the cigarette out. "Touchy subject, huh?"

"Yeah. Very touchy. Honestly of all the nasty shit I did when I was alive that one's probably only about fourth on the list of things that got me put in Hell."

Vilet cocked her eyebrow.

“Yeesh.”

"Yeesh is right. In case you couldn't tell from everything about me, I'm kinda the fucking worst.!" He fished around in his pockets, looking for another cigarette, or his misplaced flask, anything to get him out of the conversational hole he'd dug for himself.

“...chill dude. I don’t know if you’ve noticed but we’re literally in Hell. You spent last night playing Sorry with a mobster pornstar, an accessory to murder, and the motherfucking Bayou Butcher. You’re far from the worst person I’ve met.”

"I'm sorry, fucking _what_? Is that what those guy's deal is?" Cas laughed, suddenly feeling quite silly. "I mean the porn star thing isn't exactly surprising but, Mr. Smiles is the fucking Bayou Butcher?"

“Yeah man, you didn’t know? Alastor, aka Alastair McCarthy, aka that cannibal radio host all the true crime kids wet their panties over.”

“How the hell do you know?”

Vilet wiggled her eyebrows.

Cas snorted. "You little fuckin' weirdo! No wonder you two were so buddy buddy last night, you're a little freak!"

Vilet punched the air above her head, and winked at Cas.

“Fuck yeah I am! I’m like 99% sure Husker has a decent kill count of his own too, but you didn’t hear that from me.”

"Fuckin' Hell, kid! If you'd told little 22 year old me that the kid he yanked up on stage in Red Rock would have turned out like this I'd have kept you around just for inspiration!" As soon as the words came out of his mouth he felt sick to his stomach. He did use a girl for his music in Red Rock, but it wasn't inspiration, it was theft. Fuck, how did he forget that those events happened so close together?

“If you’d kept me around, I would have been fucking your bandmates the _moment_ I hit puberty. Write a song about that, I fuckin dare you.”

Cas wasn't sure if he laughed or choked on something. "I don't work for free kid, this is hell not a college campus. Besides I think Dominic would have killed us both before you got the chance."

“Is he the guy who yelled at you about child support when I showed up? Because if so, you should know the footage of that screaming match ended up on YouTube.”

"I don't know what YouTube is but judging by your tone, that's not great news for me!" Cas hopped up onto the counter, getting sick of standing. "Dom had some real shit goin' on in his head, I don't blame him for freaking out. I do blame him for getting me addicted to coke though."

“I feel that dude. But seriously, you haven’t heard of YouTube once since you’ve been down here? You are missing out.”

“Nope, never heard of it.”

“Tell you what. I’m gonna pass the fuck out any second now and I need to take a fucking nap, but I’ll teach you about the internet sometime, ok?”

Cas smiled. He didn't have any real interest in the internet or in modern technology but he liked this kid.

"Yeah, why not! Now go to your room and go to bed before I have to carry you up there myself. Go, get outta here!"

Vilet smiled and walked off, but just before she was out the door, she turned back for a moment.

“Thanks for the talk bro, I’ll see ya later.”

"Bro?" Cas said to himself as she walked away. It'd been a long time since anybody had considered him their brother. Ah, he was reading too deep into it! But still, he couldn't help but feel a little lighter than usual for the rest of the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Backstory! Exposition! Bonding!


	6. Downtown Entertainment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our lovely duos have a nice night on the town!

You wouldn’t think Hell would have any use for horror movies, right? Wrong. The damned former studio execs churned out shitty gore-fests like production line fodder.

And Vilet decided Alastor should see one that was based off of him.

“Little flower, where are you dragging me in such a hurry?”

“There’s a movie based off of you! I wanna see if it’s accurate!”

Alastor chuckled and allowed himself to be pulled by the sleeve into the dingy theatre.

Meanwhile, back at the hotel Cas was wandering up and down the halls aimlessly, half seqrching for Vilet, and half searching for something to keep his mind occupied while he waited for a response from his dealer.

"Hey there Closet Case!" Shit. Cas turned to see Angel at the end of the hallway. He was tempted to run but Angel's legs were so god damn long that Cas had a feeling he wouldn't even make it to the stairs before the spider caught up to him.

“Uh, hey Angel. What’s...what’s up?”

“Charlie and Vaggie are out on date night, which means we have free reign to indulge in _whatever_ we want!”

“I-I’m not gonna have sex with you!”

Angel rolled his eyes.

“No, I mean like a bender. I’ve been clean for days and it’s miserable, you can handle yourself so we’re gonna go get wrecked!”

"Oh!" Cas lit up. Fuck waiting around for a call back from his dealer! If Angel was offering, Cas certainly wasn't going to say no. "Well shit, in that case, lead the way Drag Show!"

“I knew you weren’t a total moper! I know this banger joint downtown, they’ve got everything dirt cheap.”

"What are we waiting for then? Let's go get fucked up!" Cas yelled. He had been itching for _anything_ hard. Sometimes booze and cigarettes just didn't cut it, and with the week he'd had? Cas felt like he deserved a line or two. Or four. Or as many as his body could handle.

Fortunately for Cas, the hangover had worn off enough that the red and pink neon lights of the cityscape didn’t make his head want to implode. The pile of white power and half-filled needles on the other hand certainly would.

But fuck it, this is hell. An overdose won’t kill a demon, and Cas decided in that moment that he was willing to suffer.

Heroin and cocaine at the same time was never a good idea, but he did it anyways. Over and over and over again. It turned his brain to liquid that sloshed around in his skull, all of his thoughts and feelings getting lost in the tiny waves.

Cas laughed at something Angel said, he wasn't sure exactly what but Angel seemed quite pleased to hear it, so Cas took it as a win for his drug addled brain.

The minutes and sights blurred, multicolored neons, visions of faces and bodies he’d never seen, music he’d never hear again, and the overpowering stench of sin.

Cas stuck his head out the passenger side window of the car (when did Angel steal a car? He shouldn’t be driving) and let the wind whip past his face. Angel whooped and hollered in the background, the natural adrenaline high mixing with the artificial elevation of the drug concoction they’d filled themselves with.

“Forget redemption.” Said Cas. “This is the real heaven!”

“You know it, Closet Case!”

Cas wanted to ask where he was, where they were going. But he didn't. Instead he just fell back into the passenger seat and said, "You know Angel, you're pretty cool when you're not being a fuckin' weirdo!"

“Bitch please, I could say the same for you, ya fuckin’ prude!”

“You wanna keep this party goin’?”

“You know it, baby!”

Across town, the theatre was very pissed at two of it’s louder patrons.

Blood splattered the screen. The main character wept, bloodstained hands holding the lifeless face of his lover.

Alastor and Vilet were laughing.

“These filmmakers are absolute fools! Any killer worth their salt wouldn’t leave a witness alive!”

That was one of hundreds of details that they'd picked apart. It seemed that Vilet and Alastor were having more fun making fun of the movie than they were actually watching it.

Another demon from the row in front of them turned around.

"Would you guys shut the fuck up already? We're trying to watch!"

Alastor’s neck cracked when he turned to look the man in the eyes.

“And what is your name, my good fellow? How’s the wife and kids? Would be a shame if you had to watch out for _them_ wouldn’t it?”

The man want pale and sunk back into his seat. Vilet cackled at the scene, both the one on the screen and the one playing out in front of her.

The movie was comically bad, but perhaps the most heinous part of it all was the inclusion of a love interest for the character based on Alastor. Not only had this woman never existed, but she had more screen time than Alastor's character did!

Alastor laughed harder than ever at the horrifically bad sex scene.

“How silly! To think anyone would consider themselves capable of catching any sort of interest from me!”

Vilet laughed too, but not genuinely.

“Yeah...! Silly...so silly.”


	7. Barred

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> These poor fucking idiots.

Cas didn't quite recall how he got back to the hotel, or where the fuck Angel went, but he was back at the hotel and desperately trying to keep the party going, even if he was the only one celebrating. 

"Husk! My dude! Pour me something that'll make me wish I'd never been born!" Cas yelled as he stumbled up to the bar.

“Three shots of clear demon piss, coming right up.”

“I hope to fuck that’s just a nickname.”

“Take your chances man.”

The liquid in the shots Husk slid to him from across the bar tastes quite literally, like burning.

"Fuck! Oh God! That's awful! I hope you haven't been serving the kid this shit, you'll melt the poor girls insides!" Cas coughed. It had been a long time since alchohol tasted any stronger than water but Hell is a damn fine place to find things to hurt yourself with.

“I don’t serve kids. Ain’t even seen one down here, ‘nless you count that princess.”

“What about Vilet?”

“Trust me man, she’s a grown ass lady.”

“She’s 19.”

Husk and Cas were both frozen for a minute. Cas, not wanting to deal with whatever crisis Husk was about to have grabbed the two untouched shots and backed away from the bar.

"I'm gonna let you process that. I'll bring the glasses back down... eventually! See you later Husk!"

Husk sat in shock for a good 30 seconds before bringing the rest of his own bottle up to his mouth and draining it.

“Shit.”

Vilet and Alastor returned from their theater outing not long after, and Vi needed a fucking drink. After saying goodnight to Alastor, she sidled up to the bar and gave Husk a charming smile.

"Hey." She said.

“No.”

“What?”

“No. No booze for you, kid.”

“What the...’kid’? Since when do you call me ‘kid’? Quit fucking with me, what do I have to do for it?”

“No.”

"What the fuck, Husk! I'm not a kid I-" she stopped in her tracks. There was only one demon she knew who called her 'kid'. It made sense that those alcoholic fucks would talk. She had asked Cas not to tell Charlie but she hadn't asked for any discretion in regards to Husk. She wasn't sure if that was her own mistake or just a dick move on Cas's part.

“Fine. You know what, fuck it. Bye.”

“See ya later kid.”

“No, fuck you. You don’t get to fucking call me that.”

Husk sighed. Doing the right thing really felt like shit.

Vilet wasn't sure if she went to Cas's room to curse him out or to try and get a drink from him but either way, she didn't expect to see Cas absolutely schlumped and high out of his mind laying on the floor outside of his room.

"Oh hey kid! Do an old man a favor and open the door for me would ya'? I can't get it myself on account of my Stupid Hands." He waved his limp hands at her in a 'look, see?' motion.

For some reason, Cas being wasted when she was barred pissed her off more than anything. She shoved him out of the way, kicked his door open, and started ransacking his room.

“Whatcha doin there kid?”

“Shut up. You got me banned from Husk’s bar and now you owe me a fucking drink.”

"Oh. My bad?" Cas had already forgotten his whole conversation with Husk. He launched himself onto his bed and tried to get comfortable, but his stupid jeans were bothering him.

"Yeah feel free to just tear all my shit up kid, go wild!" He said only half sarcastically, as he tried to kick off his pants.

Vilet tore his dresser drawers open until she found one with a full bottle in it. She took it and stormed out of the room, slamming the door on her way out.

“Fuck.” Thought Cas. “Did I fuck up?”


	8. Taking Care

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vilet isn’t dealing with anything well.

The Hotel was, for once, empty. Cas’s worn leather boots shuffled slowly across the creaking floorboards, his opiate-riddled mind blurring his vision and numbing his feet. In his daze, he dragged himself down the hallways looking for something to occupy the few neurons he had left. 

When he heard someone humming, he’d thought Charlie must have come home, or maybe Niffty was singing while she cleaned. He was wrong on both counts, and that information became excruciating to know once he started hearing the voice clearer.

The voice struck a chord through Cas’s clouded vision. Such a sad tune coming from his...friend. Yeah. She’s his friend. It sobered him up, just a little.

Cas followed the sound as quietly as he could, finally stopping in front of a slightly ajar bathroom door. Steam poured out from the crack, and even with his dampened senses, the unmistakable smell of blood and vodka permeated the vapor.

Cas shoved the door open, only to be greeted with the ever-stoic pokerface of his best friend. She was sitting on the rim of the ornate claw-foot bathtub in a white tank top and shorts, electric neon pink blood dripping from several gashes on her thighs and arms, staining her clothes, the bath water, and the white tile floor below. 

The gashes did nothing to cover the oily black markings on the skin beneath. The marks covered her hands and extended up to the veins of her arms, and the inky stains on her hips mimicked handprints. They pulsed like a heartbeat, and the movement paired with the practically glowing liquid made Cas’s head hurt. 

“Vi, what...what’re you doin’?”

Vilet lazily pointed to a small collection of liquor bottles in a corner of the room, and spoke with a speed Cas struggled to keep up with.

“Bloodletting to an extreme degree in order to artificially manufacture a higher blood-to-alcohol ratio with as little actual alcohol as possible to avoid invoking Husk’s wrath once he realizes I’ve stolen from his supply.”

“Wh...what?”

“Less blood. More drunk.”

Cas paused a moment, then extended a hand towards Vilet. She went to bat it away but before she could...Cas shoved her into the tub.

“What the hell man?!”

“Stay. Imma...gonna get soap. That shit’ll hurt real bad if you don...don’t clean em’ up.”

Vilet settled into the almost-boiling bath, letting the pink blood on her skin and clothes wash away in the clear water. By the time her body registered the pain, Cas had already tossed half of the medicine cabinet’s contents on the ground. He stumbled back to the side of the tub and reached in to tug one of her arms out and halfhazardly pat the open wounds with a disinfectant wipe. Vilet sucked a breath through her teeth for a makeshift hiss, and Cas patted her head (it was more of a slap, really) to comfort her.

“Gonna...gonna get you all fixed up an’ clean...then you can take a nap an’ feel all better in the mornin’.”

Vilet sighed gently, and relaxed again into the water, letting her arm go limp in her friend’s grasp.

“Thanks Cas.”


End file.
